


Something Better

by Uzuchi2



Category: Naruto
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, One-Shot, Reinarnation au, sns
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-19
Updated: 2017-10-19
Packaged: 2019-01-19 15:10:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,050
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12412683
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Uzuchi2/pseuds/Uzuchi2
Summary: Sasuke has nightmares of a past he doesn't remember and Naruto helps him work through it.





	Something Better

**Author's Note:**

> Second fic! :) This one-shot was inspired by the song 'Something Better' by Audien feat. Lady Antebellum. Re-posted and somewhat edited from my Tumblr.

Sasuke had never been a strong believer of fate. That is, until he met  _those_ eyes in a crowded shopping mall. He was almost positive he had never seen those eyes before and yet there was something eerily familiar about them. They seemed to ignite something in him, a faint recognition in the back of his mind.

It had been but a brief glance, a flicker of blue amongst the sea of people. Sasuke was drawn to them in an instant and couldn't stop his body from moving even if he tried. He sprinted and weaved his way through the clusters of people. It didn't take long for him to catch up to the owner of those eyes. 

The young man had turned around then and time stopped altogether for Sasuke. Set in a tanned face of a blonde haired boy, were the most vibrant blue eyes Sasuke had ever seen. They reminded Sasuke of clear blue skies or perhaps vast blue oceans. He watched in fascination as those eyes widened, a hidden something flashing within them. And then the boy smiled and Sasuke felt the rest of the world fall away. An overwhelming sense of familiarity overcame him. Warmth resonated from his chest and spread to every inch of his body. His entire being seemed to thrum with energy and life. It coursed through his veins and he wondered how a simple stranger could evoke such strong reactions out of him. 

But all thoughts of rationality left his mind because standing before this stranger, felt a lot like coming home. 

* * *

Sasuke had never forgotten his first meeting with Naruto. It had been all at once terrifying and exciting. He was positive he had not met Naruto prior to then and yet Sasuke felt like he'd known Naruto for  _years_. It had been easy to accommodate Naruto in his life. Much easier than he had ever allowed anyone and while it should have bothered him, it didn't. 

Being with Naruto felt  _right_. Sasuke wasn't much of a socialite but that didn't seem to deter Naruto in the slightest. Oftentimes, there would be lapses in their conversations but Naruto seemed fine with it and Sasuke always enjoyed the silence. It was comfortable. And being around Naruto made him feel at ease and so he did not mind the quiet moments. They never lasted long though because Naruto loved to talk. Sasuke wasn't normally one to like talkative people but there was something about Naruto's incessant chatter and overly enthusiastic behavior that was almost endearing. They slowly fell into a dynamic that felt natural to them.

It hadn't taken long before they moved from simple acquaintances, to casual friends, to close friends that knew everything about each other. It grew to a point where they could communicate with each other through a simple glance or even a fleeting touch. It was a little over a year when they moved on from friendship to something a little more. Sasuke didn't like referring to their relationship as any one thing because it consisted of many things. Naruto had called them 'soulmates' once and perhaps he was right in a way, but even then that didn't seem like quite enough. So, Naruto settled on calling Sasuke his 'Person.' Sasuke wasn't entirely sure what that meant either but he supposed it would suffice for the time being. 

Being with Naruto, as pleasant as it was, was strange at times. It grew stranger the closer they became. Sasuke would have random visions of unfamiliar places and faces. He would sometimes look at Naruto and suddenly envision him dressed in a horrendous orange jumpsuit and strange whisker-like birthmarks on his face. And he knew Naruto liked orange but certainly not to  _that_ extent. In these visions, Naruto is always wearing a headband with a strange leaf-like symbol engraved on a metal plate on the headband. Sometimes, Sasuke would dream of a family that was not his own, namely a brother he had admired, loathed, and yet loved so dearly. 

He didn't like those dreams. Those dreams usually provoked a sense of sadness and bitterness. Then there were dreams of Naruto, just Naruto. Some were happy, others were filled with terrible, brutal violence that would cause Sasuke to wake up screaming in the middle of the night. 

They got worse when Naruto moved in with him but it helped him cope a little better with Naruto there to chase away the shadows of his nightmares. He'd talked to Naruto about these dreams once and half expected Naruto to laugh at him or call him insane even. He didn't. When he had talked about it for the first time, there wasn't a trace of mockery in his expression. Instead, Naruto listened intensely, showing his concern whenever Sasuke mentioned something bad that happened to himself. 

"Perhaps they're flashes of a past life," Naruto had said. 

Sasuke snorted, "Yeah, right. Like such a thing exists. That's crazy."

But Naruto didn't laugh. In fact, he was uncharacteristically serious and the laughter died in Sasuke's throat. There was a far away look in Naruto's eyes as if he were recalling a distant memory. A second later, Naruto was back to his smiling self, "Yeah, you're probably right. You probably just have a very vivid imagination."

A vivid imagination...yes, that's what Sasuke tried to brush it off as and yet something in his gut told him otherwise. There was a part of him that  _knew_ that these were more than just dreams his mind decided to conjure up. Because whenever Sasuke had these dreams, they felt all too real. 

Tonight was no exception. 

_"What the hell do you know about me?! You never had a family in the first place! You were alone from the very beginning! What makes you think you can understand? I'm suffering because I had those bonds! What makes you think you can understand how it feels to lose all of that?!"_

_As he stood before a younger looking Naruto, words spilled from Sasuke's mouth, ones he couldn't control. Much to his horror, his body moved against his will. He winced as his fist continuously met Naruto's. Why was he hurting Naruto? Why were they fighting? What was the point to all of this?_

_"It wasn't meaningless. To me, you have become my closest friend."_

_"Then, why...?"_

_"All the more reason why there is meaning in killing you."_

_Fire shot through Sasuke's veins. Overwhelming power overtook him and his mind clouded over. It was intoxicating, this power. He felt indestructible. Heat gathered in his palm and the sound of a thousand birds chirping filled the air. Before he knew it or could stop, his arm was thrusting forward, aiming for Naruto's chest._

_No..._

_NO._

NO!

Sasuke awoke with a start, his chest heaving up and down rapidly. He reached up to clutch the fabric above his racing heart and swallowed thickly, his throat feeling all too dry. Sasuke startled when he felt a hand touch his shoulder but relaxed as soon as he met Naruto's hazy blue eyes. He looked tired and Sasuke felt guilty for waking him. This had been the fourth night in a row. Struggling to find his voice, Sasuke managed to whisper a hoarse, "Sorry."

Naruto frowned and reached toward to touch Sasuke's cheek, rubbing it gently with his thumb, "You're crying."

Sasuke flinched and pulled away before lifting a hand to his face. He was surprised at the wetness he felt there,"Oh..."

Without further prompting, Naruto moved closer to Sasuke and wrapped his arms around him, tucking Sasuke's head under his chin. Sasuke exhaled slowly as he felt Naruto's hands gently caress his back. They laid in that position for a while, simply listening to the other's breathing and the raindrops falling against their window. Another second passed before Sasuke calmed down. He moved closer to Naruto and reached up to press his palm against Naruto's chest, "I nearly killed you."

Naruto stilled and Sasuke could feel Naruto's arms tighten around him. He lifted his gaze to meet Naruto's and could see Naruto trying to process this information. An instant later and Naruto flashed a faint yet playful smile that didn't quite reach his eyes, "I know you have the tendency to kick me off the bed or punch me in your sleep, but that hardly counts as attempted murder." 

Sasuke knew that Naruto was trying to provide him a way out because talks like this always made him upset. But he honestly couldn't find it in him to go along with it. Sasuke couldn't just brush it off like all the other times. They needed to talk about this. His fingers tangled in the fabric of Naruto's shirt, "I hurt you."

"Sasuke..."

"All I did was hurt you," Sasuke clenched his jaw, frustration building inside of him. Frustration from what? Sasuke didn't quite know himself. It just  _hurt_. "You let me. You kept letting me hurt you. Why...why didn't you run away like everyone else? Why did you have to care so much? Why-" Sasuke choked up. 

"Hey, Sasuke..."

Sasuke detangled himself from Naruto and sat up, quickly. He turned away from Naruto, unable to look at him at the moment. The feeling of guilt he knew was not entirely he is own began to eat away at him. He looked out the window at the brightening sky of the early morning. Sasuke frowned and looked at the clock on their bedside table. He cursed when he saw it was around four in the morning. They'd have to get up in a couple of hours for their classes at the university. 

"Sasuke," Naruto called out to him, "Hey, Sasuke, talk to me."

Sasuke shook his head. 

His breath caught in his throat as he heard Naruto rustle the sheets behind him. Their old mattress creaked as Naruto slid off and walked around the side of the bed to Sasuke's. He knelt in front of Sasuke and took hold of his hands, "Look at me, Sasuke. Don't hide from me, please."

Sasuke's eyes widened at the fear he saw in Naruto's eyes. He had only seen that fear in dreams. In dreams where Naruto begged him not to go. In the end, Sasuke always left. Not because he wanted to but because he  _had_ to. In real life, in this life, Naruto rarely ever showed any sign of fear. His carefree and bright spirit was near impenetrable. Fear didn't seem to exist in Naruto's vocabulary until now. Naruto's grip tightened around his wrists and Sasuke winced. "Please don't run away from me again," Naruto whispered. 

"What?" Sasuke frowned.

Naruto mirrored Sasuke's expression and shook his head, as if trying to clear water from his ears, "Tell me what happened. I don't like seeing you hurting, Sasuke. It hurts me, too."

_"When I see you carrying on the way you do, I just...hurt."_

Sasuke bit his lip and tried to will away the vision. He took a deep breath and stared down at their hands before lacing their fingers together, "I-I don't know what's happening to me. Lately, the dreams have been more frequent. They're so much more vivid now, Naruto. I don't understand them. I see you. Not the you I see before me now but a different you. A you that suffered as I did."

Sasuke paused, waiting for Naruto to say something but he remained silent. Naruto instead squeezed his hands tighter, urging him to continue. Sasuke looked down again, drawing patterns against Naruto's skin, "You're my best friend in these dreams, I think. It's complicated. And you're always chasing me for some reason even though all I seem to do is hurt you."

"Is that what happened in the dream you were just having?"

"Yeah..."

"Tell me about it."

Sasuke's bottom lip quivered as he spoke, "I...shoved my fist through your chest. I couldn't control it. I didn't even hesitate."

"It was just a dream, Sasuke. I'm alive and happy, see?" Naruto took Sasuke's hand and placed it over his heart. Sasuke felt more reassured feeling the rhythmic beating beneath their hands, "I'm okay. It was just a nightmare and it was one time--"

"That's the thing!" Sasuke shot up and yanked himself away, "It wasn't only one time that I hurt you. There are dreams where we nearly beat each other to a bloody pulp! There are dreams where I'm screaming and punching you over and over again. And it  _hurts_ , Naruto. God, it hurts so much because I don't want to hurt you!"

"Sasuke..."

"I hurt you over and over and over again! But you still won't let me go! And I don't understand it!" Sasuke began pacing around the room, "Why the hell did you keep pursuing me even though all I did was try to cut you off?! Why the hell did I have to mean so fucking much to you?!"

Sasuke gritted his teeth together, suddenly feeling embarrassed for letting all of that out. He didn't even know where all that came from. Naruto blinked and slowly rose to his feet, too. He took Sasuke's left hand and intertwined his pointer and middle finger with Sasuke's. Sasuke's entire left arm tinged. 

A small but genuine smile formed upon Naruto's lips, his eyes sparkling with complete devotion, "Because you're my Sasuke. You're my Person."

"What does that even mean? You keep using that word but what does that mean to you?"

Naruto's expression turned thoughtful then, "Well, I don't know if I can explain it well. It's...complicated, ya know? It's just--before I met you, I felt like I was waiting for something, searching for someone or something only I didn't quite know who or what. But when I saw you for the first time it suddenly clicked. I looked at you and all the pieces fell together. I looked at you and saw my past, present, and future all at once. I looked at you and saw everything I could possibly ever want. I looked at you, Sasuke, and I just knew. You were my home."

Sasuke felt his heart flutter, "Home?"

"Yeah," Naruto blushed and turned away, rubbing the back of his neck in a bashful manner, "It's really cheesy, I know. But that's just the way it is. It's like all I want to do is remain by your side. When I'm with you, I feel like I belong. You're...my Person."

A smiled tugged at Sasuke's lips as his heart ached, although it wasn't an entirely unpleasant feeling. It was a good hurt. Sasuke vision blurred.

"H-hey, what's wrong now?" Naruto looked worried all over again.

"Huh?"

"You're crying again," Naruto 'tsked' and wiped Sasuke's years away with his thumbs, "You don't have to cry, Sasuke. I'm sure whatever you did to me in those dreams was probably warranted. I can be an idiot sometimes. And I'm sure I did quite a number of terrible things to you, too. So don't feel bad. They're just dreams, right? No need to get worked up over it..."

Naruto stopped talking when Sasuke started to chuckle. The chuckles turned into full blown laughter and Naruto could only stare in confusion. Sasuke couldn't help himself. Naruto's babbling and ramblings was just so  _Naruto_. "No, that's not it. I'm not upset anymore. I'm happy."

"Happy?"

Sasuke laughed again at Naruto's adorably perplexed expression. Settling down from his high, Sasuke leaned forward to nuzzle his nose against Naruto's neck, "I'm really happy.  _You_  make me the happiest."

He wasn't the most affectionate person and most physical contact made him uncomfortable but at the moment it's all he wanted. He wanted to remain like this. He wanted to remain with Naruto. 

"So," Naruto began, "does his mean you're okay now? Can we go back to sleep? We have to wake up in a few hours and you know I'm not a morning person. We have organic chemistry first thing and..."

Sasuke grunted and rolled his eyes. Leave it to Naruto to ruin the moment but Sasuke felt good enough now and his head was mostly clear. He nodded and allowed Naruto to pull him back into bed. He pulled the covers over them and let Naruto snuggle against him. 

The instant Naruto's head touched the pillow, he yawned and smacked his lips, already beginning to fall asleep, "See, Sasuke? I kept my promise. I told you we'd find each other again..."

Sasuke furrowed his brows as Naruto trailed off.  _Promise? Find each other again?_ Sasuke freed his hand from between them and poked Naruto's cheek, "Oi, Naruto. What did you mean by that? Oi..."

Naruto didn't budge. It always amazed Sasuke how quickly Naruto managed to to fall asleep. The man was out like a light and it had only been a few minutes. In the darkness of the room, without anyone to see it, lest they risk being threatened, Sasuke pouted. 

Sasuke huffed before relenting for the time being. He pulled Naruto closer and let himself drift off, muttering a soft, "Usuratonkachi..."

* * *

_"Hey, Sasuke," Naruto spoke quietly as he played with the grass beneath his fingers. It was a relatively calm night as they sat beneath a cloudless night sky._

_"Hm?"_

_"Remember how I promised to die with you all those years ago and said we'd be together in the next life?"_

_"What about it?"_

_"I still mean it."_

_Sasuke kept his gaze towards the sky, his long hair blowing in the wind, "Is that so?"_

_"Yeah, bastard. I just...I'd like to think that one day, we'll find each other in another life and perhaps things will be less complicated, ya know? Perhaps we'll find something better."_

_"As if things between us could be anything but complicated," Sasuke scoffed, "As long as we're shinobi our lives will be nothing but endless complexities."_

_"Then I hope one day we'll have a future when we're no longer shinobi. Just us," Naruto smiled, "Naruto and Sasuke."_

_"You think such a thing is possible?" Sasuke finally looked at Naruto and was surprised to see complete confidence in his eyes._

_"Yeah, I think it is."_

_Sasuke turned away and fell back against the grassy hill,_ If such a world exists, I would like to go there with you."

**END.**

 

 


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